Few feel they have good understanding of GOP health care plan

Updated on: June 20, 2017 / 6:15 AM
/ CBS News

Sanders on health care

By Jennifer De Pinto, Fred Backus, Kabir Khanna and Anthony Salvanto

As Republican leaders push forward to repeal and replace Obamacare, most Americans would prefer a public discussion take place in the Senate, feeling they don't have a good understanding of what the plans would do. From what they do know, or anticipate, by two to one, more believe the plans will hurt them rather than help them. And the bill passed recently by the House gets majority disapproval.

Perhaps this is because most Republicans, Democrats, and independents agree they haven't heard enough to feel they have a good understanding of the Republicans' plans yet.

Still looking for information, many start off as skeptical. Most Democrats and nearly a third of independents think the GOP health care plans will hurt them personally. More than half of Republicans anticipate no effect on them personally.

Women and lower-income Americans are particularly likely to say they will be hurt personally by the plans.

Meanwhile, most Americans would prefer that Congress improve the Affordable Care Act, not repeal it, including half of Republicans who don't want it repealed entirely. Overall, seven in ten say the law should either be kept in place or that it has some good things but needs changes to make it work better. Fewer than three in ten say Congress should repeal and replace it entirely.

This poll was conducted by telephone June 15-18, 2017 among a random sample of 1,117 adults nationwide. Data collection was conducted on behalf of CBS News by SSRS of Media, PA. Phone numbers were dialed from samples of both standard land-line and cell phones.

The poll employed a random digit dial methodology. For the landline sample, a respondent was randomly selected from all adults in the household. For the cell sample, interviews were conducted with the person who answered the phone.

Interviews were conducted in English and Spanish using live interviewers. The data have been weighted to reflect U.S. Census figures on demographic variables.

The error due to sampling for results based on the entire sample could be plus or minus four percentage points. The error for subgroups may be higher and is available by request. The margin of error includes the effects of standard weighting procedures which enlarge sampling error slightly.

This poll release conforms to the Standards of Disclosure of the National Council on Public Polls.